Croatia’s Davis Cup champions returned home on Monday to be greeted by thousands of fans at a welcome ceremony at the main square in Zagreb, after winning the title for the second time in history, beating the France national tennis team in Lille 3-1.

The Croatia national tennis team, led by players Marin Cilic and Borna Coric captained by coach Zeljko Krajan, will go down in history as the last champions in the current set-up.

Next year, the 118-year-old competition format will be replaced with a one-week final tournament, in which 18 teams will play each other in one location.

The first Davis Cup winners were the United States team, back in 1900.

Marin Cilic, who is currently ranking seventh on the ATP list, on Sunday defeated best ranked Frenchman Lucas Pouille, securing the title. Pouille currently ranks as world’s number 32 in ATP rankings.

In 2005, players Mario Ancic and Ivan Ljubicic beat the Slovakia national team in Bratislava to win Croatia’s first-ever Davis Cup title.

The 2018 Davis Cup champions arrived to the Zagreb Airport at 14.30, and proceeded to the city centre and the Ban Josip Jelacic Square, where the welcome ceremony was held.

Cilic greeted the crowd on the square with a “Bonjour, Zagreb,” thanking all the supporters.

“This is like a dream. Thank you, everyone,” Cilic said.

After the main ceremony on the square, the team was received by President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, who decorated the players and the support team.

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